''Like a Virgin'' is the second studio album by American singer and songwriter

Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone (; ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Widely dubbed the " Queen of Pop", Madonna has been noted for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting, a ...

, released on November 12, 1984, by

Sire Records Sire Records (formerly Sire Records Company) is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group and distributed by Warner Records. History Beginnings The label was founded in 1966 as Sire Productions by Seymour Stein and Richard Gottehrer ...

. Following the success of her

self-titled An eponym is a person, a place, or a thing after whom or which someone or something is, or is believed to be, named. The adjectives which are derived from the word eponym include ''eponymous'' and ''eponymic''. Usage of the word The term ''epon ...

debut album, Madonna wanted to become the

record producer A record producer is a recording project's creative and technical leader, commanding studio time and coaching artists, and in popular genres typically creates the song's very sound and structure.Virgil Moorefield"Introduction" ''The Producer as ...

of her next album. However, her label was not ready to give her the artistic freedom and she chose

Nile Rodgers Nile Gregory Rodgers Jr. (born September 19, 1952) is an American musician, record producer and composer. The co-founder of Chic, Rodgers has written, produced, and performed on records that have sold more than 500 million albums and 75 million ...

instead to produce the album due to his work with

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...

. Madonna wrote six songs on the record, five of which feature Steve Bray as a co-writer. The album was recorded at Power Station Studio in New York at a quick pace. Rodgers enlisted the help of his former

Chic Chic (; ), meaning "stylish" or "smart", is an element of fashion. It was originally a French word. Pronounced Chick. Etymology '' Chic'' is a French word, established in English since at least the 1870s. Early references in English diction ...

bandmates

Bernard Edwards Bernard Edwards (October 31, 1952 – April 18, 1996) was an American bass player and record producer, known primarily for his work in disco music with guitarist Nile Rodgers, with whom he co-founded Chic. In 2017, Edwards was selected as the ...

, who was the bassist, and Tony Thompson, who played drums. Jason Corsaro, the record's

audio engineer An audio engineer (also known as a sound engineer or recording engineer) helps to produce a recording or a live performance, balancing and adjusting sound sources using equalization, dynamics processing and audio effects, mixing, reproduction, ...

, persuaded Rodgers to use

digital recording In digital recording, an audio or video signal is converted into a stream of discrete numbers representing the changes over time in air pressure for audio, or chroma and luminance values for video. This number stream is saved to a storage de ...

, a new technique introduced at that time. The album's photographs were shot by

Steven Meisel Steven Meisel (born June 5, 1954) is an American fashion photographer, who obtained popularity and critical acclaim with his work in ''Vogue'' and ''Vogue Italia'' as well as his photographs of friend Madonna in her 1992 book, ''Sex''. He is n ...

. Madonna wanted the album title and the cover image to make a provocative link between her own religious name Madonna, as the

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

title for

Jesus Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...

' mother

Mary Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religious contexts * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...

, and the

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

concept of the virgin birth. While not a substantial musical departure from Madonna's first album, she felt that the material from ''Like a Virgin'' was stronger. After its release, ''Like a Virgin'' received mixed reviews from

music critics Music journalism (or music criticism) is media criticism and reporting about music topics, including popular music, classical music, and traditional music. Journalists began writing about music in the eighteenth century, providing commentary on w ...

; however, retrospective reviews of the album have been much more positive. ''Like a Virgin'' was a commercial success and became Madonna's first number one album on the ''Billboard'' 200 and set the record as the first female album in history to sell over five million copies in the United States. The

Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

(RIAA) later certified it

diamond Diamond is a Allotropes of carbon, solid form of the element carbon with its atoms arranged in a crystal structure called diamond cubic. Another solid form of carbon known as graphite is the Chemical stability, chemically stable form of car ...

for shipment of ten million units. It also reached number one in Germany, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Spain, Italy and the United Kingdom, and remains one of the best-selling albums of all time with sales of over 21 million copies worldwide. Five singles were released from the album, including Madonna's first US number-one " Like a Virgin" and her first UK number-one "

Into the Groove "Into the Groove" is a song by recorded by American singer Madonna, and featured on the 1985 film ''Desperately Seeking Susan''. Written and produced by both Madonna and Stephen Bray, the main inspiration behind the song was the dance floor; t ...

". To promote the album, she embarked on

The Virgin Tour The Virgin Tour was the debut concert tour by American singer-songwriter Madonna. The tour supported her first two studio albums, '' Madonna'' (1983) and '' Like a Virgin'' (1984). Although initially planned for an international audience, the ...

, which had shows in cities of North America only. ''Like a Virgin'' has attained significance as a cultural artifact of the 1980s. Madonna proved that she was not a

one-hit wonder A one-hit wonder or viral hit is any entity that achieves mainstream popularity, often for only one piece of work, and becomes known among the general public solely for that momentary success. The term is most commonly used in regard to music p ...

and was able to provide herself with a permanent footing in the music world. Her songs became a lightning rod for both criticism by conservatives and imitation by the younger female population, especially "Material Girl" and "Like a Virgin". According to author J. Randy Taraborrelli, "Every important artist has at least one album in his or her career whose critical and commercial success becomes the artist's magic moment; for Madonna, ''Like a Virgin'' was just such a defining moment."

Background

A former dancer and fixture on the New York club scene, Madonna Ciccone became known to the world simply as Madonna, with the release of her 1983 self-titled debut album ''

''. Fueled by hit songs like "

Holiday A holiday is a day set aside by custom or by law on which normal activities, especially business or work including school, are suspended or reduced. Generally, holidays are intended to allow individuals to celebrate or commemorate an event or tra ...

", " Borderline" and " Lucky Star", the album was one of the best selling of the year and helped Madonna become one of the most exciting new artists of the 1980s. When she started work on her second album, Madonna felt that her first album had succeeded in introducing her "street-smart dance queen" persona, and she wanted to solidify and build upon that concept. According to her, "My work, my dedication—the stubbornness for getting ''Madonna'' released—had paid off. Now it was time to solidify my future." For ''Like a Virgin'', Madonna attempted to become one of the primary

s, feeling the need to control the various aspects of her music. She believed that depending on a particular producer for her album was not something that suited her. Madonna said "I learnt my lesson while creating my debut album, and the way eggie, the producer of her debut projectLucas left me in the water with the project, you can't trust men"—referring to the incident, when due to a certain difference of opinion between producer

Reggie Lucas Reginald Grant Lucas (February 25, 1953 – May 19, 2018) However, Warner Bros. Records was not ready to give her the artistic freedom that she wanted. In J. Randy Taraborrelli's biography of Madonna, she commented, Ultimately,

was chosen by Madonna as the producer of the album, with the approval of the Warner Brothers executives. Madonna chose Rodgers mostly because of his work as a member of the 1970s band

, and his most recent production work with

on his 1983 album '' Let's Dance''. She commented, "When I was making the record, I was just so thrilled and happy to be working with Nile Rodgers. I idolized Nile because of the whole Chic thing. I couldn't believe that the record company gave me the money so that I could work with him." For his part, Rodgers recalled that he had first seen Madonna perform at a small club in New York in 1983. In an interview with ''

Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, to ...

'' magazine, Rodgers explained: "I went to the club to see another woman sing, but when I got there Madonna was onstage. I loved her stage presence and then we met right after that. I kept thinking to myself, 'Damn, is she a star', but she wasn't at that time. I always wanted to work with her and ''Like a Virgin'' seemed like a perfect opportunity."

Recording

The album was recorded at Power Station Studio in New York at a quick pace. Rodgers enlisted the help of his former Chic bandmates

, who was the bassist, and Tony Thompson, who played the drums; they appeared on several tracks of the album. Rodgers decided to be the guitarist, when Edwards requested him to do so, in exchange for their help. The recording sessions did not start until the afternoon as Rodgers, who attended late-night parties, was not accustomed to work in early mornings. The schedule was also difficult for Madonna, who recalled that she used to "go to the swim club on the Upper West Side and go swimming and walk from there to the recording studio. It was impossible for me to reach there at morning." Rodgers recalled that Madonna was a hard worker and incredibly tenacious. He commented: "I am always amazed by Madonna's incredible judgement when it comes to making pop records. I've never seen anyone do it better, and that's the truth. When we did that album, it was the perfect union, and I knew it from the first day in the studio. The thing between us, man, it was sexual, it was passionate, it was creativity ... it was pop." Jason Corsaro, the record's

, persuaded Rodgers to use

, a new technique at the time which Corsaro believed was going to be the future of recording. To ensure this, Corsaro used a Sony 3324 24-track digital tape recorder and a Sony F1 two-track during the mixing of the tracks. Madonna recorded the lead parts of the songs in a small, wooden, high-ceilinged piano room at the back of Studio C, also known as Power Station's " R&B room". Corsaro then placed gobos around her while using the top capsule of a stereo AKG C24 tube microphone, with a

Schoeps Schalltechnik Dr.-Ing. Schoeps GmbH, known as Schoeps Mikrofone, is a German manufacturer of professional studio condenser microphones for recording and broadcast. The privately owned company is based in Karlsruhe, south-west Germany, and was fo ...

microphone preamplifier The term microphone preamplifier can either refer to the electronic circuitry within a microphone, or to a separate device or circuit that the microphone is connected to. In either instance, the purpose of the microphone preamplifier is the same. ...

and a Pultec equalizer. Once the tracks met with everybody's approval,

Robert Sabino Robert Sabino is an American rock keyboardist.(14 July 1996)Star Turns From a Home in the Firehouse ''The New York Times'' ("Mr. Sabino, a well-known keyboardist, attracted a record producer, Nile Rodgers, who lived in Fairfield County, to some o ...

added the keyboard parts, playing mostly a

Sequential Circuits Prophet-5 The Prophet-5 is an analog synthesizer manufactured by the American company Sequential. It was designed by Dave Smith and John Bowen in 1977, who used microprocessors, then a new technology, to create the first polyphonic synthesizer with full ...

, as well as some

Rhodes piano The Rhodes piano (also known as the Fender Rhodes piano) is an electric piano invented by Harold Rhodes, which became popular in the 1970s. Like a conventional piano, the Rhodes generates sound with keys and hammers, but instead of strings, t ...

and

acoustic piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...

, while Rodgers also played a

Synclavier The Synclavier is an early digital synthesizer, polyphonic digital sampling system, and music workstation manufactured by New England Digital Corporation of Norwich, Vermont. It was produced in various forms from the late 1970s into the early 1 ...

. Madonna, although not required, was present every minute of the recording sessions and the mixing process, Corsaro commented: "Nile was there most of the time, but she was there all of the time. She never left".

Packaging and title

The cover sleeve and images were shot by

, who would become a regular collaborator with Madonna, in a suite at the St. Regis New York. Madonna wanted the album title to make provocative link between her own religious name—

as the

title for

' mother

—and the

concept of the virgin birth. With the title song alluding to this concept, Madonna wanted the album cover to have mixed messages as well. Author Graham Thompson described that "reclining on a satin sheet, with a bouquet on her lap and wearing a wedding dress, a closer inspection reveals Madonna's image as highly fetishized and sexualized." He added that the heavy make-up, pouting lips, and despoiled hair, along with the tight-fitting bustier and full-length gloves, turned Madonna's image into a figure not of virtue, but of desire. This point, according to Thompson, is further emphasized by the belt she is wearing, the wording on which is just visible as "Boy Toy". He added: "The image was ambiguous and was based upon the fact that Madonna's appeal at that point of her career was not presenting herself just as an object of desire, but also as a desiring female subject".

Stephen Thomas Erlewine Stephen Thomas Erlewine (; born June 18, 1973) is an American music critic and senior editor for the online music database AllMusic. He is the author of many artist biographies and record reviews for AllMusic, as well as a freelance writer, occ ...

from

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

commented that the "Steven Meisel-shot cover ... was as key to her reinvention as the music of the album itself." William McKeen, author of ''Rock and roll is here to stay: an anthology'', felt that the image was another trigger and testament to the fact that Madonna was the last word on fashion for women and young girls of that era, the epitome of cool. Costume designer

Arianne Phillips Arianne Phillips (born April 26, 1963) is an American costume designer. Phillips was recognized for her work on the Broadway musical '' Hedwig and the Angry Inch'', starring Neil Patrick Harris, earning her a Tony award nomination for Best Cost ...

commented of the ''Like a Virgin'' look: "This was one of the most shocking, liberating and influential moments in pop culture/fashion history ... Fashion has never been the same." Madonna herself declared: "I have always loved to play cat and mouse with the conventional stereotypes. My ''Like a Virgin'' album cover is a classic example. People were thinking who was I pretending to be— the Virgin Mary or the whore? These were the two extreme images of women I had known vividly, and remembered from childhood, and I wanted to play with them. I wanted to see if I can merge them together, Virgin Mary and the whore as one and all. The photo was a statement of independence, if you wanna be a virgin, you are welcome. But if you wanna be a whore, it's your fucking right to be so."

Composition

According to Taraborrelli, "Madonna and Rodgers' collective energy—she wanting to score with a smash second album and he wanting to be the producer to give it to her—drove the production of ''Like a Virgin'' with great precision." Madonna also collaborated with her former boyfriend Steve Bray, who co-wrote many of the album's songs. Reflecting on the music composition for the album, Bray noted: "I've always kind of made the rib cage and the skeleton of the songs already—she's there for the last things like the eyebrows and the haircut." The opening track "

Material Girl "Material Girl" is a song recorded by American singer Madonna for her second studio album, '' Like a Virgin'' (1984). It was released on November 30, 1984, by the Sire label as the second single from ''Like a Virgin''. It also appears slightly ...

" was written by Peter Brown and Robert Rans. Madonna explained that the concept of the song was similar to her life's situation at that time. According to her, the song was provocative, hence she was attracted to it. "Material Girl" incorporated

new wave music New wave is a loosely defined music genre that encompasses pop-oriented styles from the late 1970s and the 1980s. It was originally used as a catch-all for the various styles of music that emerged after punk rock, including punk itself. La ...

and consists of synth arrangements with a robotic voice repeating the

hook A hook is a tool consisting of a length of material, typically metal, that contains a portion that is curved or indented, such that it can be used to grab onto, connect, or otherwise attach itself onto another object. In a number of uses, one e ...

. The lyrics identify with

materialism Materialism is a form of philosophical monism which holds matter to be the fundamental substance in nature, and all things, including mental states and consciousness, are results of material interactions. According to philosophical materiali ...

, with Madonna asking for a rich and affluent life, rather than romance and relationships. Written by Madonna and Steve Bray, "

Angel In various theistic religious traditions an angel is a supernatural spiritual being who serves God. Abrahamic religions often depict angels as benevolent celestial intermediaries between God (or Heaven) and humanity. Other roles include ...

" is the second track on the album. It was one of the first songs developed for the project and, according to Madonna, was inspired by a girl who is saved by, and subsequently falls in love with an angel. "Angel" consists of a three-chord ascending hook, which serves as the verse and chorus. It has vocal harmonies beneath the main chorus and the lyrics repeat the angel-like image of Madonna's savior. The title track " Like a Virgin" was written by

Billy Steinberg William Endfield Steinberg (born February 26, 1950) is an American songwriter. He achieved his greatest success in the 1980s with songwriting partner Tom Kelly; together they wrote or co-wrote the No. 1 hits " Like a Virgin" by Madonna (1984), ...

and Tom Kelly. Steinberg said that the song was inspired by his personal experiences of romance. It was chosen for Madonna by Michael Ostin of

Warner Bros. Records Warner Records Inc. (formerly Warner Bros. Records Inc.) is an American record label. A subsidiary of the Warner Music Group, it is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on March 19, 1958, as the recorded music division of the ...

, after listening to a demo sung by Kelly. However, Rodgers initially felt that the song did not have a good enough

and was not suitable for Madonna, but subsequently changed his opinion after the hook was stuck in his mind. He credits Madonna with recognizing the song's potential: "I handed my apology to Madonna and said, 'you know ... if it's so catchy that it stayed in my head for four days, it must be something. So let's do it.'" "Like a Virgin" is a dance-oriented song, composed of two hooks. Madonna's voice is heard in a high

register Register or registration may refer to: Arts entertainment, and media Music * Register (music), the relative "height" or range of a note, melody, part, instrument, etc. * ''Register'', a 2017 album by Travis Miller * Registration (organ), th ...

while a continuous arrangement of drums are heard along the

bassline Bassline (also known as a bass line or bass part) is the term used in many styles of music, such as blues, jazz, funk, Dub music, dub and electronic music, electronic, traditional music, traditional, or classical music for the low-pitched Part ( ...

. According to author Rikky Rooksby, the lyrics of the song are ambiguous and consist of hidden innuendo. In sexual terms, the lyrics can be interpreted in different ways for different people. In "Over and Over", Madonna sings about determination despite disappointments. The song consists of instrumentation from drums, synths and has a three-chord progression. An emotional moment occurred in the recording studio when Madonna covered the 1978

Rose Royce Rose Royce is an American soul and R&B group. They are best known for several hit singles during the 1970s including "Car Wash", " I Wanna Get Next to You", " I'm Going Down", "Wishing on a Star", and "Love Don't Live Here Anymore". Career Th ...

song "

Love Don't Live Here Anymore "Love Don't Live Here Anymore" is a song written by Miles Gregory and originally recorded by Rose Royce. It was produced by former Motown songwriter and producer Norman Whitfield for Whitfield Records. Lead vocals were sung by Gwen Dickey a ...

". Rodgers recalled: "Madonna had never performed with a live orchestra before. I was very much into doing everything live, so I just said, 'Madonna, you go out there and sing and we will follow you.' At first Madonna was hesitant, but the live setting ended up producing memorable results. She sang and she was overcome with emotions and she started crying, but I left it on the record." The song features Madonna's vocals supported by acoustic guitars and synth strings, with Thompson playing the drum in the second verse. Towards the end, Madonna emotes in the voice of a soul singer. "

Dress You Up "Dress You Up" is a song by American singer Madonna from her second studio album '' Like a Virgin'' (1984). It was released as the fifth and final single from ''Like a Virgin'' on July 31, 1985, by Sire Records. The song was the last track to ...

" was the last track to be added to the album as it was submitted late by songwriters Andrea LaRusso and Peggy Stanziale. Although Rodgers rejected it as there was no time to compose a melody and record it for the album, Madonna pushed for the song's inclusion on ''Like a Virgin'', as she particularly liked its lyrics. The song is a drum beat-driven dance track featuring instrumentation of guitars and vocals from a

choir A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which ...

. The lyrics are an extended metaphor for fashion and sex, comparing dressing up with passion. "Shoo-Bee-Doo" contains homage to Motown music. Beginning with a slow

introduction Introduction, The Introduction, Intro, or The Intro may refer to: General use * Introduction (music), an opening section of a piece of music * Introduction (writing), a beginning section to a book, article or essay which states its purpose and g ...

, the song is in the

doo-wop Doo-wop (also spelled doowop and doo wop) is a genre of rhythm and blues music that originated in African-American communities during the 1940s, mainly in the large cities of the United States, including New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Chica ...

genre and resembles the songs of early Sixties girl groups like

The Shirelles The Shirelles were an American girl group formed in Passaic, New Jersey in 1957. They consisted of schoolmates Shirley Owens (later Shirley Alston Reeves), Doris Coley (later Doris Kenner-Jackson), Addie "Micki" Harris (later Addie Harris McFadd ...

The Crystals The Crystals are an American vocal group that originated in New York City. Considered one of the defining acts of the girl group era in the first half of the 1960s, their 1961–1964 chart hits – including " There's No Other (Like My Baby)", ...

. The

saxophone The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed on a mouthpiece vibrates to pr ...

breakdown Breakdown may refer to: Breaking down *Breakdown (vehicle), failure of a motor vehicle in such a way that it cannot be operated *Chemical decomposition, also called chemical breakdown, the breakdown of a substance into simpler components *Decompo ...

is played by

Lenny Pickett Lenny Pickett (born April 10, 1954) is an American saxophonist and musical director of the ''Saturday Night Live'' band. From 1973 to 1981 he was a member of Tower of Power. He is known for his skill in the altissimo register (executed by using ...

. The lyrics discuss relationship problems, and are phrased as clichés in the

coda Coda or CODA may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * Movie coda, a post-credits scene * ''Coda'' (1987 film), an Australian horror film about a serial killer, made for television *''Coda'', a 2017 American experimental film from Na ...

. "Pretender" starts with the

chorus Chorus may refer to: Music * Chorus (song) or refrain, line or lines that are repeated in music or in verse * Chorus effect, the perception of similar sounds from multiple sources as a single, richer sound * Chorus form, song in which all verse ...

and then moves to the verse. It talks about seduction and the insecurity felt by a woman who feels that things are moving too quickly for her with her man. "Stay" is the final track on the album. Using triple-rhythms and double-tracked vocals, the song includes a noise resembling someone slapping a

microphone A microphone, colloquially called a mic or mike (), is a transducer that converts sound into an electrical signal. Microphones are used in many applications such as telephones, hearing aids, public address systems for concert halls and public ...

and a spoken sequence which fades away in the end. Madonna Munich 4

" was added as a bonus track in the 1985 international

reissue In the music industry, a reissue (also re-release, repackage or re-edition) is the release of an album or Single (music), single which has been released at least once before, sometimes with alterations or additions. Reasons for reissue New aud ...

of ''Like a Virgin''. Madonna's inspiration behind the song was the dance floor, and she wrote it while watching a handsome Puerto Rican man across her balcony. Initially written for her friend

Mark Kamins Mark Kamins (April 13, 1955 – February 14, 2013) was an American record producer, remixer, and disc jockey famous for his role in the New York club scene. He is best known for helping launch the career of singer Madonna by bringing her to Sire ...

, Madonna later decided to use it in the soundtrack of her 1985 film ''

Desperately Seeking Susan ''Desperately Seeking Susan'' is a 1985 American comedy-drama film directed by Susan Seidelman and starring Rosanna Arquette, Aidan Quinn and Madonna. Set in New York City, the plot involves the interaction between two women – a bored housew ...

''. Unlike the other songs on ''Like a Virgin'', "Into the Groove" was recorded at

Sigma Sound Studios Sigma Sound Studios was a recording studio in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.. It was founded in 1968 by recording engineer Joseph Tarsia. Located at 212 North 12th Street in Philadelphia, it was one of the first studios in the United States to ...

, and produced by Madonna and Stephen Bray. Madonna's friend

Erika Belle Erika Belle is an American socialite, art curator, fashion designer, and dancer, most known for her friendship and work with pop singer Madonna (entertainer), Madonna in the 1980s. She has been featured dancing in Madonna's videos to "Everybody (M ...

was present during the recording and watched the whole process. In Andrew Morton's ''Madonna'' biography, she noted that at one point of the recording, Bray was facing difficulties with the

bridge A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually somethi ...

of the song, as the

melody A melody (from Greek language, Greek μελῳδία, ''melōidía'', "singing, chanting"), also tune, voice or line, is a Linearity#Music, linear succession of musical tones that the listener perceives as a single entity. In its most liter ...

thought by him was not syncing with the rest of the composition. Undeterred by his obvious difficulties, Madonna stepped up to the microphone and sang the words "Live out your fantasy here with me". Bray's problem was solved; Belle remembered the experience as: "

he song He or HE may refer to: Language * He (pronoun), an English pronoun * He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ * He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets * He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' ...

seemed to come out of her, I was awestruck." The song consists of instrumentation from drums, percussion, congas and whistles. Madonna's voice is double-tracked in the chorus. The lyrics are simple, and written as an invitation to dance with the singer, with sexual innuendos and undertones in the meaning.

Promotion

Live performances

Madonna debuted the first single "Like a Virgin" at the first

MTV Video Music Awards The MTV Video Music Awards (commonly abbreviated as the VMAs) is an award show presented by the cable channel MTV to honour the best in the music video medium. Originally conceived as an alternative to the Grammy Awards (in the video category) ...

on September 14, 1984, where she appeared on stage atop a giant

wedding cake A wedding cake is the traditional cake served at wedding receptions following dinner. In some parts of England, the wedding cake is served at a wedding breakfast; the 'wedding breakfast' does not mean the meal will be held in the morning, but at ...

dressed in a wedding dress, adorned with the infamous "Boy Toy" belt buckle, and veil. The climax of her risqué performance found her

masturbating Masturbation is the sexual stimulation of one's own genitals for sexual arousal or other sexual pleasure, usually to the point of orgasm. The stimulation may involve hands, fingers, everyday objects, sex toys such as vibrators, or combinati ...

and rolling around on the stage. The performance is noted as one of the iconic performance in MTV's history. On December 13, 1984, Madonna performed "Like a Virgin" on

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, p ...

's program ''

Top of the Pops ''Top of the Pops'' (''TOTP'') is a British Record chart, music chart television programme, made by the BBC and originally broadcast weekly between 1January 1964 and 30 July 2006. The programme was the world's longest-running weekly music show ...

'', wearing punky torn tights, a vivid pink wig, religious accessories and layered mesh tops. It was later voted as the second best ''Top of the Pops'' performance of all time. She also appeared at the 1985

Live Aid Live Aid was a multi-venue benefit concert held on Saturday 13 July 1985, as well as a music-based fundraising initiative. The original event was organised by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise further funds for relief of the 1983–1985 fami ...

charity concert, where she performed "Into the Groove". The album was further promoted on her first headlining tour,

, which only visited cities in the United States and Canada. Early on there were plans to schedule dates in England and Japan due to Madonna's large fan base in both countries. However, the final schedule did not reflect the idea. In the end several more US dates were added and moved to larger concert venues due to overwhelmingly strong ticket sales. Madonna's performance on the tour was described by Taraborrelli as "full of excitement", singing songs from her debut album as well as ''Like a Virgin'', and asking the audience "Will you marry me?" The costumes included colorful new wave jackets for "

" and white wedding gowns similar to the one worn in her "Like a Virgin" music video. Referring to her Detroit roots and contemporary artist

Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over a ...

, Madonna sang a verse of "

Billie Jean "Billie Jean" is a song by American singer Michael Jackson, released by Epic Records on January 2, 1983, as the second single from his sixth studio album, '' Thriller'' (1982). It was written and composed by Jackson and produced by Jackson and ...

" during "Like a Virgin". The Virgin Tour was a success and collected a total of more than US$5 million. During a 2009 interview with ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

'', interviewer Austin Scaggs asked Madonna regarding her feelings and emotions during the tour, since it was the first time she was playing in arenas. Madonna replied saying,

Singles

" Like a Virgin" was released as the lead single from the album in late 1984. It received positive reviews from contemporary as well as old critics, who frequently called it as one of the defining songs for Madonna. It became her first number-one single on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, while reaching the top of the charts in Australia, Canada and Japan and the top-ten of other countries. The song was

certified gold Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...

by the

(RIAA) on January 10, 1985, for shipping a million copies across United States – the requirement for a gold single prior to 1989. The music video portrayed Madonna sailing down the riverways of Venice in a gondola, as well as roaming around a palace wearing a white wedding dress. With the video, scholars noted Madonna's portrayal of a sexually independent woman, the symbolism of the appearance of a man with lion's mask to that of

Saint Mark Mark the Evangelist ( la, Marcus; grc-gre, Μᾶρκος, Mârkos; arc, ܡܪܩܘܣ, translit=Marqōs; Ge'ez: ማርቆስ; ), also known as Saint Mark, is the person who is traditionally ascribed to be the author of the Gospel of Mark. Accor ...

, and compared the eroticism of the video to the vitality of the city of Venice. "

" was the second single from the album, released in November 1984. Critics have frequently noted "Material Girl" and "Like a Virgin" as the songs that made Madonna an icon. The song was a commercial success, reaching the top-five in Australia, Belgium, Canada, Ireland, Japan and United Kingdom. It reached position two on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in the United States. The music video was a

mimicry In evolutionary biology, mimicry is an evolved resemblance between an organism and another object, often an organism of another species. Mimicry may evolve between different species, or between individuals of the same species. Often, mimicry f ...

Marilyn Monroe Marilyn Monroe (; born Norma Jeane Mortenson; 1 June 1926 4 August 1962) was an American actress. Famous for playing comedic " blonde bombshell" characters, she became one of the most popular sex symbols of the 1950s and early 1960s, as wel ...

's performance of the song "

Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend "Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend" is a jazz song introduced by Carol Channing in the original Broadway production of '' Gentlemen Prefer Blondes'' (1949), with music by Jule Styne and lyrics by Leo Robin. Marilyn Monroe version American actr ...

" from the 1953 film '' Gentlemen Prefer Blondes''. The mimicked scenes are interspersed with scenes of a Hollywood producer trying to win the heart of an actress, played by Madonna herself. Discovering that, contrary to her song, the young woman was not impressed by money and expensive gifts, he pretended to be penniless and succeeded in taking her out on a date. "

" was the third released single from the album, in April 1985. Critics gave mixed review of the song, with one group denoting it as a classic while the others felt it was sub-par compared to the other Madonna singles. "Angel" became Madonna's fifth consecutive top-five single on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and reached the top of its dance chart. "

" was released as a single in Europe, Asia and South America in July 1985. The song was appreciated by contemporary critics as well as authors, who have frequently called it "Madonna's first great single". "Into the Groove" reached the top of the charts in Australia, Belgium, Ireland, Japan, Netherlands, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom, where it was Madonna's first number-one single. In the United States, the song was only available as the

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record compan ...

of the 12-inch single of "

", therefore it was ineligible to chart on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 at the time. It reached number one on the US Hot Dance Club Play chart where it was listed as a double-sided single with "Angel". In Australia and Canada, the song also was released as a double-sided single with, "Angel". "

" was the last single from the album. Critics reacted positively to the dance-pop nature of the track. "Dress You Up" became Madonna's sixth consecutive top-five single in the United States. It also reached the top-ten in Australia, Belgium, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. The

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a m ...

for the single is taken from the live performance from

, filmed in

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...

. Two further singles were released internationally from the album. "Over and Over " was released in late 1985 exclusively in Italy, while "Love Don't Live Here Anymore" was released in early 1986 exclusively in Japan.

Critical reception

According to '' Q'' magazine, ''Like a Virgin'' was the album that "propelled adonnainto the stratosphere – and rightly so. The songs are smart, funny, sexy and irresistible." Taraborrelli said, "It was ''Like a Virgin'' which reflected Madonna as a more versatile and artistic performer and vocals on this album being reflectively sharper in contrast to her early works in the music industry." Michael Paoletta from ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' commented that the songs on the album sustain a "fevered

dance-rock Dance-rock is a dance-infused genre of rock music. It is a post-disco genre connected with pop rock and post-punk with fewer rhythm and blues influences. It originated in the early 1980s, following the decline in popularity of both punk and disco ...

momentum". In his review for AllMusic, Stephen Thomas Erlewine commented, "Overall, the album adds up to less than the sum of its parts—partially because the singles are so good, but also because on the first album, she stunned with style and a certain joy. Here, the calculation is apparent, and while that's part of Madonna's essence—even something that makes her fun—it throws the record's balance off a little too much for it to be consistent, even if it justifiably made her a star." Debby Miller from ''

'' preferred Madonna's debut album over ''Like a Virgin''. In ''

The Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, the ''Voice'' began as a platform for the crea ...

'',

Robert Christgau Robert Thomas Christgau ( ; born April 18, 1942) is an American music journalist and essayist. Among the most well-known and influential music critics, he began his career in the late 1960s as one of the earliest professional rock critics and ...

was also lukewarm towards the record, writing " adonna'sso sure of herself she's asking men and women both to get the hots for the calculating bitch who sells the fantasy even while she bids for the sincerity market where long-term superstars ply their trade. And to make the music less mechanical, she's hired Nile Rodgers, who I won't blame for making it less catchy." Jim Farber from ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cul ...

'' said that "In addition to raising the Madonna/whore ante with songs like the title cut, ''Virgin'' cradled the kind of '80s hits ("

") built to transcend the ''

Dynasty A dynasty is a sequence of rulers from the same family,''Oxford English Dictionary'', "dynasty, ''n''." Oxford University Press (Oxford), 1897. usually in the context of a monarchical system, but sometimes also appearing in republics. A ...

'' era." Alfred Soto from ''

Stylus Magazine ''Stylus Magazine'' was an American online music and film magazine, launched in 2002 and co-founded by Todd L. Burns. It featured long-form music journalism, four daily music reviews, movie reviews, podcasts, an MP3 blog, and a text blog. Addi ...

'' remembered the first time that he heard the songs from the album and commented, "Lots of critics think something similar occurred when Madonna followed her eponymous debut with ''Like a Virgin'', helmed by Nile Rodgers with all the fixin's—too calculated next to the 'raw passion' of the debut. This is nonsense; it misses how Madonna conflated notions of spontaneity and calculation. Rodgers is the ideal collaborator."

Stephen Holden Stephen Holden (born July 18, 1941) is an American writer, poet, and music and film critic. Biography Holden earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from Yale University in 1963. He worked as a photo editor, staff writer, and eventually be ...

from ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' said: "With a tough-cookie voice that's both coy and streetwise, Madonna's singing harks back to the rock-and-roll ''girl-group'' tradition that preceded

the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

. But where girl groups, from the Shirelles to

the Ronettes The Ronettes were an American girl group from Washington Heights, Manhattan, New York City. The group consisted of lead singer Veronica Bennett (later known as Ronnie Spector), her older sister Estelle Bennett, and their cousin Nedra Talley. The ...

, worshipfully extolled their boyfriends' cars, haircuts and rebel poses, Madonna's point of view is decidedly more self-interested. In matters of love, she is a comparison shopper with a shrewd sense of her own market value. The words 'shiny and new' describe not only the way the love-smitten singer feels in the title song but the sound of the album." Matt Damsker from the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...

'' commented: "Madonna's beating vibrato sometimes makes her sound so robotic in the album." Lou Papineau, while writing for ''

The Providence Journal ''The Providence Journal'', colloquially known as the ''ProJo'', is a daily newspaper serving the metropolitan area of Providence, Rhode Island, and is the largest newspaper in Rhode Island. The newspaper was first published in 1829. The newspape ...

'', said that "In ''Like a Virgin'', Madonna proves she's shallow, but spunky." Sal Cinquemani from ''

Slant Magazine ''Slant Magazine'' is an American online publication that features reviews of movies, music, TV, DVDs, theater, and video games, as well as interviews with actors, directors, and musicians. The site covers various film festivals like the New York ...

'' gave a positive review, saying "Though not as innovative as her debut, ''Like a Virgin'' stands as one of the most definitive pop artifacts from the indulgent Reagan Era. The mid-tempo ballad 'Shoo-Bee-Doo' and a soulful cover of Rose Royce's '

' proved Madonna could churn out more than just novelty hits, while the sugary '

' and the irresistible '

' contributed to the singer's record-breaking list of consecutive Top 5 hits (16 in all). The retro-infused 'Stay' and the percussive 'Over and Over' are the album's hidden gems." Ed Stevenson from ''

People A person (plural, : people) is a being that has certain capacities or attributes such as reason, morality, consciousness or self-consciousness, and being a part of a culturally established form of social relations such as kinship, ownership of pr ...

'' felt that "Madonna does have a sense of humor, though she is buried under so many layers of self-parody it's hard to tell sometimes ... She is backed on this by the reliable rhythmic touch of veteran Nile Rodgers, whose contributions have helped her create a tolerable bit of fluff. Hugo Mistry from the ''

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television ar ...

'' felt that "''Like a Virgin'' was Madonna's breakthrough, playing off her self-conscious campiness with a series of hot dance tracks, attention-grabbing lyrics and steamy videos."

Commercial performance

Madonna - Rebel Heart Tour 2015 - Paris 1 (24093152126)

''Like a Virgin'' was recorded and finished by September 1984, but the release of the album was held up, much to Madonna's frustration, by the continuing sales of her debut album, which was approaching two million sales in the United States. ''Like a Virgin'' debuted at number 70 on the ''Billboard'' 200 issued for December 1, 1984. The album reached the top ten of the ''Billboard'' 200 on December 8, 1984, and after one month reached the top of the chart on February 9, 1985, where it stayed for three weeks. It also reached a peak of ten on the

Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a music chart published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine that ranks R&B and hip hop albums based on sales in the United States and is compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The chart debuted as Hot R&B LPs in the issue dated J ...

chart. After 14 weeks, the album sold 3.5 million copies. By July 1985, ''Like a Virgin'' became the first album by a female artist to be certified for sales of five million units in the United States. It was eventually certified ten times platinum (diamond) by the

(RIAA), for shipment of ten million copies of the album. It placed at three on the year-end chart for 1985, with Madonna becoming the top pop artist for the year. After the advent of the

Nielsen SoundScan Luminate (formerly Nielsen SoundScan, Nielsen Music Products, and MRC Data) is a provider of music sales data. Established by Mike Fine and Mike Shalett in 1991, data is collected weekly and made available every Sunday (for albums sales) and eve ...

era in 1991, the album sold a further 574,000 copies. It sold additional 882,000 units at the BMG Music Club, which are not counted by the Nielsen SoundScan. In Canada, the album debuted at number 78 on the ''RPM'' Albums Chart, on November 10, 1984. It reached a peak of number three, on February 16, 1985. The album was present for a total of 74 weeks on the chart, and was certified

by the

Canadian Recording Industry Association Music Canada (formerly Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA)) is a non-profit trade organization that was founded 9 April 1963 to represent the interests of companies that record, manufacture, produce, and distribute music in Canada. It a ...

(CRIA), for shipment of one million copies of the album. ''Like a Virgin'' ranked sixth on the ''RPM'' Top 100 Albums for 1985. As of June 1986, the album sold more than 750,000 units in Latin America. In the United Kingdom, ''Like a Virgin'' debuted at number 74 on the

UK Albums Chart The Official Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales and (from March 2015) audio streaming in the United Kingdom. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the Official Charts C ...

, on January 12, 1985. However, the album fluctuated on the chart for the next eight months and it was only in September that it finally reached the top of the chart. It spent two alternative weeks at the top (21st Sept and 12th Oct 1985), and a total of 152 weeks on the chart. The album was certified three times

platinum Platinum is a chemical element with the symbol Pt and atomic number 78. It is a dense, malleable, ductile, highly unreactive, precious, silverish-white transition metal. Its name originates from Spanish , a diminutive of "silver". Platinu ...

by the

British Phonographic Industry British Phonographic Industry (BPI) is the British recorded music industry's Trade association. It runs the BRIT Awards, the Classic BRIT Awards, National Album Day, is home to the Mercury Prize, and co-owns the Official Charts Company with th ...

(BPI) and has sold over a million copies there. In France, the album debuted at number five on the

French Albums Chart French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with France ...

on October 6, 1985, staying there for eight weeks, then descending down the chart. It was certified two times platinum by the Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique (SNEP) for shipment of 600,000 copies. In Australia, the album debuted and peaked at two on the

Kent Music Report The Kent Music Report was a weekly record chart of Australian music singles and albums which was compiled by music enthusiast David Kent from May 1974 through to January 1999. The chart was re-branded the Australian Music Report (AMR) in July ...

albums chart, and was certified seven times platinum by the

Australian Recording Industry Association The Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) is a trade association representing the Australian recording industry which was established in the 1970s by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replacing th ...

(ARIA) for shipment of 490,000 copies of the album. It reached the top of the New Zealand Albums Chart for three consecutive weeks and was certified five times platinum by the

Recording Industry Association of New Zealand Recorded Music NZ (formerly the Recording Industry Association of New Zealand (RIANZ)) is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell recorded music in New Zealand. Membership of Recorded Mus ...

(RIANZ) for shipment of 75,000 copies. Elsewhere, ''Like a Virgin'' reached number one in Germany, the Netherlands and Spain, while peaking within the top five in many other countries, including Austria, Japan, Sweden and Switzerland. It also became Madonna's first number-one album on the

European Top 100 Albums The European Top 100 Albums chart was the European adaptation of the ''Billboard'' 200 albums chart. It ran from March 1984 until December 2010. Also commonly referred to as Eurochart Top 100 Albums, the chart showcased the sales of an act in 19 E ...

, reaching the summit on November 23, 1985, for two weeks, and sold over 2 million copies across Europe at the end of the 1985 year. ''Like a Virgin'' has sold more than 21 million copies worldwide and became one of the best-selling albums of all time.

Legacy

After the release of ''Like a Virgin'', Stephen Holden commented in ''The New York Times'': "No phenomenon illustrates more pointedly how pop music history seems to run in cycles than the overnight success of the 24-year-old pop siren known as Madonna. The month before Christmas, Madonna's second album, ''Like a Virgin'' sold more than two million copies. Teen-agers were lining up in stores to purchase the album the way their parents had lined up to buy Beatles records in the late 60's." Madonna proved she was not a

with the release of the album which sold 12 million copies worldwide at the time of its release. In 2016, ''Billboard'' ranked at number nine in the list of Certified Diamond Albums From Worst to Best. ''Like a Virgin'' was placed at fifth at Album of the Decade by ''Billboard''—the highest peak by a female performer. Taraborrelli felt that "''Like a Virgin'' is really a portrait of Madonna's uncanny pop instincts empowered by her impatient zeal for creative growth and her innate knack for crafting a good record." He added that the success of the album made it clear what was Madonna's real persona. "She was a street-smart dance queen with the sexy allure of

, the coy iciness of

Marlene Dietrich Marie Magdalene "Marlene" DietrichBorn as Maria Magdalena, not Marie Magdalene, according to Dietrich's biography by her daughter, Maria Riva ; however Dietrich's biography by Charlotte Chandler cites "Marie Magdalene" as her birth name . (, ; ...

and the cutting and protective glibness of a modern

Mae West Mae West (born Mary Jane West; August 17, 1893 – November 22, 1980) was an American stage and film actress, playwright, screenwriter, singer, and sex symbol whose entertainment career spanned over seven decades. She was known for her breezy ...

". Although the album received mixed reviews, Taraborrelli believed that the "mere fact that at the time of its release so many couldn't resist commenting on the record was a testament to the continuous, growing fascination with Madonna ... Every important artist has at least one album in his or her career whose critical and commercial success becomes the artist's magic moment; for Madonna, ''Like a Virgin'' was just such a defining moment." Chris Smith, author of '' 101 Albums That Changed Popular Music'', believed that it was with ''Like a Virgin'' that Madonna was able to steal the spotlight towards herself. She asserted her sexuality as only male rock stars had done before, moving well beyond the limited confines of being a pop artist, to becoming a focal point for nationwide discussions of power relationships in the areas of sex, race, gender, religion, and other divisive social topics. Her songs became a lightning rod for both criticism by conservatives and imitation by the younger female population. ''

Consequence of Sound ''Consequence'' (previously ''Consequence of Sound'') is an independently owned New York-based online magazine featuring news, editorials, and reviews of music, movies, and television. In addition, the website also features the Festival Outlook ...

'' ranked the album at number two on "The 10 Greatest Sophomore Albums of All Time," calling it the album that "carved out the throne...that would be Madonna's forever: the

Queen of Pop Madonna Louise Ciccone (; ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Widely dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Pop", Madonna has been noted for her continual reinvention and versatilit ...

Track listing

All tracks produced by

, except "

" produced by

and Stephen Bray.

Personnel

Credits adapted from the album's liner notes. *

– lead vocals , background vocals *

–

Roland Juno-60 The Roland Juno-60 is an analog synthesizer manufactured by the Roland Corporation between 1982 and 1984. It followed the Juno-6, an almost identical synthesizer released months earlier. The Juno synthesizers introduced Roland's digitally control ...

II , guitars , acoustic guitar , electric guitar , string arrangements and conductor * Nathaniel S. Hardy, Jr. – keyboards *

– synthesizers , bass synthesizer , acoustic piano *

– bass * Tony Thompson – drums * Jimmy Bralower –

LinnDrum The LinnDrum, also referred to as the LM-2, is a drum machine manufactured by Linn Electronics between 1982 and 1985. About 5,000 units were sold. Its high-quality samples, flexibility and affordability made the LinnDrum popular; it sold far mo ...

and Simmons drum machine programming *

– saxophone solo * Karen Milne – string contractor *

Kermit Moore Kermit Moore (March 11, 1929 – November 11, 2013) was an American conductor, cellist, and composer. Early life and education Of African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an eth ...

– string contractor * Curtis King – background vocals * Frank Simms – background vocals * George Simms – background vocals * Brenda King – background vocals

Design

* Jeri McManus – art direction, design *

Jeffrey Kent Ayeroff Jeffrey Kent Ayeroff (born January 20, 1947) is an American record executive who has worked for A&M, Warner Records, Virgin U.S., Work Group, Apple, and Shangri-La Music. He founded Rock the Vote in 1990 in response to a censorship campaign aga ...

– art direction, design *

– photography *

Maripol Maripol (b. 1957) is an artist, film producer, fashion designer and stylist. She has had an influence on the looks of influential artists such as Madonna and Grace Jones. As part of the 1980s New York downtown scene, she captured the likes of Jea ...

– stylist

Production

* Madonna – producer * Stephen Bray – producer * Nile Rodgers – producer * Jason Corsaro – recording engineer , audio mixing * Rob "Ace" Eaton – second engineer * Gus Skinas – digital editing * Eric Mohler – digital editing assistant * Malcolm Pollack – digital editing assistant *

Bob Ludwig Robert C. Ludwig (born c. 1945) is an American mastering engineer. He has mastered recordings on all the major recording formats for all the major record labels, and on projects by more than 1,300 artists including Led Zeppelin, Lou Reed, Qu ...

– audio mastering at

Masterdisk Masterdisk is an American multimedia company in New York, located at 8 John Walsh Boulevard in Peekskill. They provide production services such as audio mastering, vinyl cutting and enhanced CD and DVD production. Their clients include such no ...

(New York City, New York) * Budd Tunick – production manager * Weisner- DeMann Entertainment – management

Record company

* Sire Records – record label, U.S. copyright owner * Warner Bros. Records – U.S. marketing and distributor record label, copyright owner * WEA International – international distributor, international copyright owner

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Decade-end charts

All-time chart

Certifications and sales

Notes

References

Book sources

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Like A Virgin 1984 albums Albums produced by Nile Rodgers Albums produced by Stephen Bray Albums produced by Madonna Madonna albums Sire Records albums Warner Records albums Dance-rock albums

Background

Recording

Packaging and title

Composition

Promotion

Live performances

Singles

Critical reception

Commercial performance

Legacy

Track listing

Personnel

Design

Production

Record company

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Decade-end charts

All-time chart

Certifications and sales

See also

Notes

References

Book sources

External links